My son and I stalked a muley buck in October from a ridge above. We got about half-way down the ridge and set up for a shot at about 150 yards. My son who is inexperienced, fired and missed clean. His marksmanship on paper targets is good out past 250 yards, but here he jerked the trigger and the bullet went high. We waited there a while and then saw another hunter come up from down in the bottom of the canyon. Obviously, we had no idea he was there. My son's shot did not present any danger to him, but it certainly ended his stalk. It wasn't a trophy buck, but I greatly appreciated that he simply walked away without saying anything. Had we seen him, we would have just sat still and watched through our glass. Instead, our shot mucked everything up and I'm sure it was rotten for him. I'm grateful he was man enough to just take it and move on. I didn't try to apologize because my son hadn't done anything wrong and I didn't want him to think he had. It was just a rotten misfortune. If the man had wanted an apology, I wouldn't have resisted him, but I still wouldn't let my son take the blame. I had called the shot, (though my son fires or not when he's ready). In any event, he was 100 yards off and walking away when we saw him and I wasn't about to start hollering.
A couple years ago, we were on the other end. We had stalked two bucks from a ridgeline above. My son had clear shots on a buck twice but didn't take them. The bucks were moving down the bottom of a canyon. At the end of the canyon just before it opens wide, we stopped because the bucks were just out of sight below us. We couldn't move further down because we'd be right on top of them. We decided to wait it out. Then two hunters came over the far ridge opposite us. One shot and killed the best buck and the other ran. It was a bummer for us, but they hadn't done anything wrong. A few days later, my son killed a different buck.
Neither of these circumstances were the same as having shot a buck and then had another hunter finish it. If that were to occur, I'd be grateful the kill was completed without further protracted suffering. I'd defer to the other hunter whether they thought it was theirs or not. Had we shot it the day before and a mile away, I'd just be grateful that it was over. Had we shot it moments before in the same place, I haven't met a fellow hunter that wouldn't give it to my son. Either way, I wouldn't dispute. My son's tag would still be good and there are other deer. I'm never in a hurry to end the hunt anyway.
The next year, we were in a different unit hundreds of miles away. We backpacked into a designated wilderness area farther than anyone else was willing (in the snow at 5 below). Got a buck and saw no one else around. That's the way to do it, but it's hard. The two events above were both in one other unit. That unit has got a lot more deer and a lot more hunters. Tags are way easier to draw, but it's tough to have much space to yourself. If the deer are there, we see at least a few other hunters every day, sometimes more. Even early archery season is no good because the herd is migratory and they're in a different unit in September.